The city of Bloomington and Monroe County still can’t agree on what to do about the Monroe Convention Center. Talks of expansion have gone on for years, but little progress has been made.
Monroe County Commissioner Penny Githens said she has yet to see the city’s proposal for the convention center in writing. She said the county council is in favor of creating a capital improvement board (CIB) and beginning the progress.
“We are still in favor of moving forward with a CIB on this, and we have said that publicly many times,” Githens said.
The CIB would consist of three members appointed by the county and three by the city. That group of six would appoint a seventh member.
LISTEN TO: Struggle over the Monroe Convention Center expansion continues
President of The Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce Eric Spoonmore said they want to see the elected officials to make good on their promise of expansion.
“The chamber is not taking a position, one way or the other, on how we move forward,” Spoonmore said. “Our position is we just want to see meaningful progress.”
Executive Director for Visit Bloomington Mike McAfee said once a deal is made, the expansion would take between two to four years.
